Activists target dog sled rides after dog deaths

LOS ANGELES 
The slaughter of 100 sled dogs in Canada has re-energized efforts by some animal activists to ban or boycott dog sled rides, a popular activity among tourists in many winter vacation spots, from New England to Minnesota to Alaska.

"I don't think society is willing to accept that animals, particularly dogs, should be killed just because they are surplus or don't suit the purpose they were born for," said Debra Probert, executive director of the Vancouver Humane Society, which has called for a provincial ban on tour businesses.

The dogs belonged to Howling Dog Tours Whistler Inc., and its parent company Outdoor Adventures Whistler, located in British Columbia. The dogs were killed last April by a company employee. The incident came to light recently when the employee applied for worker's compensation, saying he suffered post-traumatic stress after shooting the dogs and slitting their throats.

Documents from the worker's compensation probe said the company acquired the dogs in anticipation of extra business during the Olympic Games in Vancouver, and that the animals were destroyed after bookings fell. But in a letter to the editor published in the Vancouver Sun newspaper, Howling Dog's owner, Joey Houssian, said "some old and sick dogs needed to be put down" and the company thought the worker assigned the task would perform the culling "in a professional and humane manner." The worker has not been named by authorities and no charges have been brought.

Probert and others believe the incident is the tip of an iceberg in the dog sledding industry, but others say it is shocking because it is so rare.

Hundreds of North American businesses offer sled rides as part of winter vacation getaways. But there are no dog sled police who inspect, license or regulate them.

Paul and Sue Schurke have owned Wintergreen Dog Sled Lodge in Ely, Minn., for 30 years. "What happened in B.C. is such a shocking anomaly, I've never heard the likes of it. The magnitude of this atrocity is so shocking - all of us, our heads are reeling. I'm not aware of anyone in the recreational mushing industry who makes a habit of culling," Schurke said.

Most reputable sled dog businesses belong to an Alaska-based group called Mush for PRIDE, Schurke said.

Musher Karen Ramstead, who owns North Wapiti Siberian Husky Kennels in Perryvale, Alberta, Canada, has been president of the group for the last three years.

The organization, which stands for Providing Responsible Information on Dogs in their Environment, has about 500 members in several countries, including South Africa, Sweden, Canada and the United States. The Howling Dogs employee who killed the dogs was a member of PRIDE'S board, Ramstead said, and he has been removed.

This isn't the first time the industry has come under attack. Mush with PRIDE was formed in the mid-1990s because of pressure from animal rights groups over the treatment of dogs, said Ramstead, who has finished the Iditarod four times. The group recommends standards for things like food, water, exercise and kennel size.